Ministry of Defence
Artists of Machilipatnam Tradition from Andhra Pradesh to work on ‘Artwork Scrolls’ for Republic Day, 2022
Ministry of Defence in collaboration with Ministry of Culture to commission 10 huge scrolls for RD Parade
Artists to depict the stories of unsung heroes of freedom struggle and Indian Culture
Vijayawada, December 10, 2021
Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav is an initiative of the Government of India to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of progressive India and the glorious history of its people, culture and achievements. It is an embodiment of all that is progressive about India’s socio-cultural, political and economic identity.
As part of grand celebrations of the Amrit Mahotsav, the Ministry of Culture in collaboration with the Ministry of Defence will display a series of scroll paintings with artworks rendered by artists from various geographical locations across the country. The major theme of these artworks will be on the unsung heroes of freedom struggle. Inspiration will also be drawn from the illustrations in the Constitution. These scrolls are proposed to be displayed along Rajpath as part of the celebrations marking Republic Day, 2022.
Ten scrolls of seventy five meters  each will be commissioned which will represent and showcase the rich Indian cultural heritage along with our unsung heroes. The scrolls would reflect inherent artistic values pertaining to the grand celebrations of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and would also reflect our National pride.
The strategic location of these scrolls along the Rajpath would serve as an open gallery for all the citizens of the country and it is intended to inspire people about the rich national heritage and legacy of Bharat in its true sense. The open air display of these painted scrolls will enhance aesthetics of the urban landscape of national capital, using art forms to express National pride and excellence.
The scrolls are proposed to reflect traditional forms of art as well as contemporary expressions, reflecting the essence of rich cultural and artistic heritage of India.
The Director General, NGMA along with the Advisory Board of NGMA  will act as mentors for the scroll paintings.
The scrolls will be painted at:
S. No Location Dates No. of artists
1 Bhubaneshwar  11-16th December 2021 200-250
2 Chandigarh  26th – 30th December 2021 200-250
Venues are as follows:
 Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Bhubaneswar 
 Silicon Institute of Technology, Bhubaneswar 
 Chhitkara University, Chandigarh from 26 Dec 2021.
The event for the scroll painting has been titled, “Kala Kumbh-AzadiKaAmritMahotsav”.
The workshops at Bhubaneswar would have artists from Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Bengal. Approximately 270 artists will participate to document the history of the freedom movement by depicting the stories of our unsung heroes through scroll paintings, creating the meta-narrative of the 75 years of India’s independence. Some of the artists of eminence who will be part of the event at Bhubaneswar are:
1. Sh. Harshvardhan Sharma, Senior and eminent artist of international fame, currently Dean Central university of Himachal Pradesh also Chairperson of the advisory committee of NGMA.
2. Sh. Ramahari Jena, senior artist, Print Making National Awardee.
3. Sh. Vijyant Dash, Prof, Fine Arts Dept, KIIT, Bhubaneswar.
4. Sh. Subrat Mallik, Eminent artist and HoD Painting Dept, BK college of Arts And Crafts, Bhubaneswar.
5. Mr. Manas Ranjan Jena, Artist and Faculty at BK college of Arts And Crafts, Bhubaneswar.
6. Sh. Manoj Pandit, eminent artist of Manjusa painting from Bihar.
Besides the above, we have several traditional artists who are masters in their respective art forms and have a long line of art lineage, and who will be participating in the event.
Some of the traditional art forms that will be depicted in the scrolls in the event at Bhubaneswar are traditional Pattachitra, Jhoti-Chitra artists of Odisha, Medinipur and Kalighat. Patachitra artists of Bengal, Hooghly and Birbhum, Bankura and Burdwan variants, Bihar’s Manjusa and Madhubani artists, the Jadu-Patiya artists from Jharkhand and the traditional harvest Sohrai art practiced by Santhala, Munda, Oraon and Prajapati artists and artists from Andhra carrying forward the Machilipatnam traditions. Besides, the contemporary art forms will also be used to weave the story of our unsung heroes during the Republic Day celebrations in January 2022.